The Trump administration has closed the Washington Monument because of an earlier visit by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, who tested positive this week for the coronavirus.
Interior spokesman Nicholas Goodwin says a couple monument workers were quarantining as a result of Bernhardt’s visit, forcing a staffing shortage and the monument’s closure.
The Interior Department announced Bernhardt’s positive test result for the coronavirus on Wednesday. Rules at the monument require the public to wear masks there. Goodwin did not immediately respond when asked if Bernhardt was following the mask rule at the time of his visit to the monument.